1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improved adjustable side window shade for automobiles for preventing sunlight from entering the interior of the automobile.
2. Description of Related Art
There are varieties of types of blinds and shades for motor vehicles known in the art for quite some time. An example of a partial sun shade which is mounted on the window of an automobile by means of a suction cup and is adjustable in length is disclosed in Paro U.S. Pat. No. 3,282,623 which utilizes two rectangular pieces which can slide with respect to each other to adjust the overall shade length. Further adjustment of the sun shade with respect to the plane of the window is provided by manual manipulation of the attaching pivoting arm. A shade to cover the side windows is disclosed in Zheng U.S. Pat. No. 4,815,784 which utilized two adjacent flexible loops covered by sheet fabric material. A similar shade utilizing only a single flexible elongated loop is disclosed in Huang U.S. Pat. No. 5,024,262. Another side window shade for automobiles is disclosed in Payne et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,944,548 which utilizes fixed length horizontally sectioned panels and is attached to the window by means of suction cups. Still another sunscreen is disclosed in FOLCIK U.S. Pat. No. 5,064,239 which uses a stretchable fabric that is attached to hook and loop fasteners placed on the four corners of the window. For a door window, the Folcik patent shows a rectangular piece of material attached by two hook and loop fasteners placed along the top edge of the window.
A drawback to the window shade devices known in the art is that they do not cover most of the side window area, are not easily adjustable to fit different models of automobiles, and do not have provisions for covering the side window vent area.
Thus, there is a need in the art for providing a side window shade to cover a major portion of the side window including the side vent area on a variety of different size and design of automobile side windows which are not necessarily rectangular, is easy to adjust, is easy to mount, is easy to remove, and is easy to fold and store when not in use.